Antibes is half way between Nice and Cannes on the Mediterranean coast - just that descriptor alone makes me swoon. On top of this you'll find an enormous port, cobblestone streets and stone walls (ramparts) from the 1500s.
That morning we were up nice and early, thanks in part to the change back from Daylight Savings plus a two year old who was beyond excited to share a bedroom with his older brother and sister.
It was a good thing though, because I was up early enough to snap this on route to finding coffee and pastry for our brekky:
Also seen on my early morning stroll, the Cathédrale dAntibes:
The stunning coastline:
We had a slow start that morning. The mister was recovering from his man cold, so while he sobbed quietly on the couch I took my daughter down to the Marché Provençal to shop for lunch supplies.
A very nicely turned out French lady who got in the way of my camera.
We were distracted by these (we had the salted butter caramel ones):
But came home with plenty of baguette, ham, tomatoes, figs and this:
That darn cheese man was just so charming. And we fell for it.
After lunch and afternoon sleeps for the little kids, we strolled 300m down the road to visit the Musée Picasso, housed in the Château Grimaldi. Picasso set up shop here from July to December 1946 and the museum shows some of his paintings, sculptures and ceramics, as well as art from many other artists. (No photos allowed inside unfortunately.)
Musée Picasso
So, Picasso. What do we all think? I really like some of his pieces, but not much of his art on display at Musée Picasso spoke to me. Except maybe to say 'too busy looking at the view to paint properly'. And really, you couldn't blame him.
Out on the terrace there was a sculpture garden with a breathtaking view over the ocean. Some of the sculptures we saw included this cute little fella:
La Sérénissime by Jean Amado, 1986
This one spoke to the civil engineer in me (unfortunately I didn't get the details of the creator, sorry):
This one made me laugh. *facepalm*
La Forêt by Germaine Richier, 1946
This one in the courtyard was inspired by Picasso:
À ma jolie. Hommage à Picasso by Arman, 1982. Picasso dug guitars.
After our date with Picasso I took the baby for a walk along the stone ramparts enclosing the port.
Dusk through one of the rampart arches
There were lots of super expensive boats about:
Definitely not part of the 99%
At the end of the ramparts on Bastion Sainte-Jaume is a sculpture called La Grande Nomade by Jaume Plensa. It depicts an enormous man sitting, holding his knees to his chest while looking out to sea.
The entire figure is made from white letters and is pretty cool, I think.
One last look across the port towards Fort Carré:
And one last photo for the day (for Keith):
The next day we visited the village of Biot. More on that next time.
Have a great week everyone!
10 comments:
Ahhhh! Tonight I dream of Antibes!! Too many beautiful photos for a favourite although the rampart arches comes close! Thank you!
Great pictures, Kirsty, as ever.
The light is so beautiful on aal of them.
I sent you some of my own photographs of work by Jaume Plensa; I saw it this September in the Yorkshire Sculpture Park.
Salted caramel are my favorite! Just blog hopping and landed here. Beautiful photos!
I'm warning you: I may have to come live with you. I'll watch the kids if it means visiting all these amazing places!!
Also, do you keep a wide angle lens on your camera?
Beautiful pictures! The one of the sea is my favourite, but you really gave me the feeling of Antibes with these atmospheric shots! Thank you! :-)
I don't like most of Picasso's work ... Like you said, most of it just doesn't "speak to me". Also, a lot of it is really macho, lacking the irony that would make it digestible for me. I like some his black and white later drawings and some of the ceramics, though.
If your aim is to make us all extremely green with envy, I'm pretty sure you've succeeded. Beautiful photos, you really capture the atmosphere and the light. I hope the mister has survived his man cold:) Im off to find something to eat. Unfortunately no salted caramel macarons, soft French cheese, baguettes or figs in sight, arrrgh.
Ali - hee, hee, we have a fold out couch in the kids' toy room. I have a wide angle (10-22mm) lens which I use a lot - esp landscapes and big architecture (from the outside), and some of the street-scapes where I'm trying to get across the feeling of being in the place. I find it hard to convey that without using the wide angle. I don't use it inside much except for churches. My walk around lens, which I have on the most, is my 24-105mm, it gives me such a good range.
When I see your pictures, I feel like I've been transported to another place. I just wish I could be there in person . Thank you for sharing.
I could so get down with eating figs and fromage while sitting in that little car while watching the sea!!!!!!!!!!! Oh, and I love your other photos too :)
Hey! I didn't know that the Plensa sculpture ended up in Antibes - it was here in Vancouver for our biennial year. Love that unexpected 'hey, I know that sculpture' photo. Sounds like a lovely day, especially the cheese part.
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